The present invention relates to guided air vehicles with control surfaces in general and, more particularly, to methods and apparatus for stowing and deploying the control surfaces of guided air vehicles.
Guided air vehicles such as missiles, smart bombs, smart munitions, and projectiles among others utilize control surfaces such as fins, canards, and wings to guide their trajectory along a desired flight path. Such air vehicles, especially those launched from manned or unmanned aircraft or groundcraft require that their control surfaces be stowed within or partially within the body of the air vehicle during storage, transportation, and launch in order to minimize potential damage to the vehicle. Stowage also allows the vehicle to physically fit in the launch apparatus and minimizes the effects of aerodynamic forces acting upon the control surfaces during launch. Once the air vehicle is in flight, the control surfaces may be deployed to their desired positions for guiding the vehicle. In many instances, control surface deployment is controlled by an onboard processor to allow completion of the air vehicle mission in accordance with a desired target strategy.
Many different mechanisms have been developed for stowing and deploying the control surfaces of an air vehicle including, for example, electromechanical, solenoids, pyrotechnic, and mechanical. In some cases where the projectile is rapidly spinning, centrifugal forces may be sufficient to deploy the control surfaces. In general, it is advantageous to minimize the volume used by control surface deployment mechanisms in order to maximize propulsion and warhead storage volumes.